The vast majority (more than 75%) of American adults with Hepatitis C are baby boomers. Left untreated Hepatitis C causes serious liver diseases, including liver cancer, fastest rising cause of cancer-related deaths and is the leading cause of liver transplants in the United States. Most don't know they have it. It is not part of the routine labs taken by your doctor. You must request a Hepatitis C test. Hepatitis C can damage the liver for years with few symptons.As a result more than 15,000 Americans, most baby boomers, die each year from Hepatitis C related illness.Deaths from Hepatitis C are projected to grow significantly in the coming years. This is unacceptable given newlyavailable therapies that can cure up to 75% of infections.CDC estimates that one-time testing of baby boomers could identify more than 800,000 additional people with thevirus, prevent expensive health care costs related to liver cancer and other chronic liver diseases. More importantlysave lives.These draft guidelines are the crucial next step in the United States fight against Viral Hepatitis.

The draft guidelines were developed by a working group including experts from CDC and other federal agencies,professional associations, community and advocacy groups, local and state health departments.They are available at www.regulations.gov, docket number CDC-2012-0005, for a public comment period.

INVITE YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS, CARETAKERS, ON WEDNESDAY MAY 30TH AT 6:15 PM TO NYU LANGONE MEDICAL CENTER IN THE THOMAS MURPHY CONFERENCE ROOM #138, ON 1ST FLOOR.It has been found that patients have more success when they have support, no matter what form it comes in.We invite eveyone to come and learn about Hepatitis C and all one endures with this virus, and what they experiencewhile on treatment.Feel free to ask questions and learn.There will be a Patient Peer facilitator, as well as a Physician assistant to answer all medical questions.Let us hear your concerns and learn how you can better help your person thru this difficult time.Everyone affected by Hepatitis C is welcome. All discussions at these meetings are confidential.Refreshments will be served.

Inked or infected: Tattooing comes with risks By Jeffrey Kreisberg There was a time not long ago when those sporting multiple tattoos were thought to be sociopaths. I’m talking about bikers, gang bangers, and prisoners — you know the type — freaks, like Lisbeth, in “The Girl with the Dragoon Tattoo”. Let’s fast forward to today. Body piercing and tattooing has become more and more popular among teens and young adults; they’re easy to get and quick and some are quite beautiful. Even minors can even get them with parental consent. It is estimated that 36% of Americans under 30 have skin designs. But don’t let peer pressure and the ease of getting one stop you (and your parents) from carefully considering the risks, like infection. Tattoo seekers should realize that we’re dealing with needles and blood here! Never mind injecting dangerous unregulated dyes, which may cause cancer, under your skin. We’re also talking about viral infections spread by contaminated blood; viruses like hepatitis C and human papillomavirus (HPV, also known as genital warts). Point of fact, hepatitis C causes more American deaths than HPV. The problem with being infected with hepatitis C is that most people don’t have early (acute) symptoms of disease and don’t even know they have the virus until it destroys their liver (chronic disease). If you have acute symptoms, they might include fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, dark urine, jaundice, joint pain, and fever. Approximately 3.2 million Americans are infected with hepatitis C of whom 75 to 85 percent will have chronic infections. Infection with hepatitis C is the leading cause of liver transplants in America and contrary to hepatitis A and B, there is no vaccine for hepatitis C. While sharing needles during illegal drug use is the biggest risk factor for contracting hepatitis C, there are increasing numbers of cases caused by some very common activities including tattooing, piercings, manicures and pedicures. In fact, it is estimated that tattooing in an unprofessional or unsterilized environment may increase your risk of hepatitis C infection 2-to-3-fold.However, there’s no need to panic. With proper precautions, these risks can be avoided. And, if you think you may have been infected you can be tested and treated. To mitigate the risk of infection, be sure you go to a licensed tattoo parlor (a license should be prominently displayed). Do not let your friends tattoo you! Since tattoo and body piercing instruments come in contact with blood and bodily fluids, infection is possible if instruments are used on more than one person without being sterilized or without proper hygiene. Professionals are required by law to have sterile instruments. I doubt your friends have an autoclave to sterilize instruments. Also, ask if the tattoo dyes have been kept in sterile containers — it is not required and could also be a source of infections. Even if your tattoo parlor is licensed it's better to be safe than sorry. Here are some things you can check for yourself to be certain your tattoo parlor is safe.Treat:

tattoo as you would any other medical procedure. You want a tattoo parlor to be at least as clean as your doctor’s office.

Ask to see the tools the artist will use. The needles should be new, sterilized, and wrapped — no exceptions. The ink should be in small pots meant for single-use and anything that touches your skin should not be reused. And the artist should wear gloves.

Make sure the work area is free of any possible contamination from items like purses and cell phones.

Tattoos can be beautiful, artistic expressions of our inner selves. Just be sure you know the risks and go to a professional tattoo artist. ---Editor's clarification: An earlier version of this article incorrectly suggested that tattooing increases the risk for hepatitis C by two to three times. That risk is true only if tattooing occurs in an unprofessional and unsterilizedenvironment.

testing for boomers Jeannie Keve, Houston Chronicle . So many baby boomers are infected with hepatitis C - and so few of them know it - that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may recommend everyone born between 1945 and 1965 be screened for the disease.Many baby boomers were infected decades ago, before the blood supply was screened for the virus, and for some, through drug use when they were younger.About 3.2 million people in the United States, including an estimated 300,000 Texans, have chronic hepatitis C. They often don't know they're sick until the virus has caused serious liver damage.Deaths from hepatitis C increased by 50 percent between 1999 and 2007, most of them among baby boomers, said Dr. John Ward, director of the division of viral hepatitis at the CDC.Three out of four people with hepatitis C were born between 1945 and 1965, Ward said, so directing testing of that group would be the most effective way to get people into treatment.He said the cost vs. benefit would be comparable to screenings for breast cancer, colorectal cancer and hypertension.The CDC will solicit public comments before making a final decision, Ward said.Blood transfusionsMany people were infected with hepatitis C through blood transfusions before 1992, when a screening test for the virus was developed. Others were infected through drug use.

"The 1960s, '70s and '80s were a time of drug experimentation, including drug injection, and that carried a high risk of hepatitis C transmission," Ward said. A baby born to an infected mother also can acquire the virus. Less commonly, it can be transmitted through sexual contact.

About 17,000 people are infected with hepatitis C every year, and 80 percent of the cases become chronic infections.Hepatitis C can cause liver damage, liver failure and liver cancer. About 12,000 people a year die from hepatitis C-related liver disease. Texas tracks only acute infections, although spokesman Chris Van Deusen said the Department of State Health Services estimated in 2006 that up to 300,000 Texans had a chronic hepatitis C infection. Traditional screening strategies, which rely on people requesting screening or health providers recommending it based on a patient's risk factors, may miss too many people, suggested Dr. Michael Fallon, chief of gastroenterology at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston and Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center. "Some people may not remember their risk factors, or they may not want to broadcast their risk factors," Fallon noted. New treatments also make this a good time to push testing, he said. Earlier standard treatment cleared the virus for less than half of patients. Adding two new drugs can increase the success rate to as high as 75 percent, he said.Treatment time halved The new regimen also can cut the treatment time in half, to about six months, Fallon said, but it is more complicated and has more side effects. "But with a near doubling of efficacy, it's taken many people who were on the fence about therapy and made them more enthusiastic about taking treatment," he said. It also has helped some patients who didn't respond to the earlier treatment, Fallon said. Treatment is expensive for people without health insurance - between $50,000 and $100,000, said Rachel Nahan, coordinator for St. Luke's Episcopal Health System's Liver Health Outreach.